How Kalshi crypto markets work
Kalshi offers two very different ways to trade crypto: leveraged perpetual futures, and simple binary event contracts on crypto prices. This guide is about the latter, the Yes/No markets, which are far gentler than perps.
Here is how they work, and how to keep them straight from perpetuals.
Crypto as a Yes/No question
A crypto event contract asks a precise binary question, such as whether Bitcoin will close above a given price by a certain date. It pays $1 if correct and $0 if not, and the price is the market's implied probability. Your maximum loss is simply what you paid, with no leverage involved.
How this differs from perpetuals
This is the key distinction. Event contracts are binary, unleveraged bets with a capped downside and a fixed resolution date. Perpetuals track the crypto price continuously, with leverage, funding, liquidation, and no expiry. If you want defined, limited risk on a crypto view, the event contract is the simpler and safer instrument.
Settlement
Crypto event contracts settle against the price source and condition named in the resolution rules, on the stated date. As always, read those rules so you know exactly which reference price and which moment decide the outcome.
Choosing between them
If you have a clear, bounded view (will it be above this level by this date) and want to know your worst case upfront, the event contract fits. If you want leveraged, two-directional exposure to ongoing price moves and can manage the risk, that is the perpetuals product. They serve different purposes.